Tasks to chapter 9

1. Explain the following expressions in English by giving situations from the text:

sell something illegal, to heave uncontrollably, walking dead, to step back, break the tense silence, his cheeks puffed out, to hand over cash, straighten each bill, head for trouble, behave normally, take that dude out, rest in one’s palm, give somebody a strange chill, give somebody static, to recoil in fear

2. Give synonyms for the following word combinations:

be stunned at somebody’s frankness– for an instant –

to figure something – be unsure how to respond –

dude – struggle to remain calm –

punk – to growl –

to perch on something– shake badly –

stuff a gun into – set everything right –

weapon – to put fear into somebody –

look forward to something emerge from a shadow –

3. Give antonyms for the following word combinations:

to stink of garbage – to remind of –

be suspicious– to lock a door –

hesitate for a moment– to miss the basket completely –

feel powerful – to come down –

4. Explain these expressions and make sentences:

• be on his hands–

• get into a terrible fix –

• everybody turned on me –

• take him/her up on that –

• settle the score –

• make a point of something –

• get the rebound –

• you are history

5. Match the following words and expressions

a. to nauseate ___push air out of your throat with a sudden sound

b. to swallow ___a large metal container used for waste

c. to cough ___spend a lot of time with particular people

d. to wrap ___catching a basketball after you failed to get a point

e. rebound ___something that you use to fight with

f. hang out ___make someone feel that you are going to vomit

g. weapon ___wind or fold cloth, paper around something

h. dumpster ___make food or drink go down your throat

6. Make a dialogue between:

• Tyray and Bones

• Tyray and Rodney

7. Write a story on one of the following topics:

• Why do thoughts of revenge ruin people’s life?

• What should people respect other people for?

8. Discuss the following topics:

• Why did Bones sell Tyray a gun?

• What were Rodney’s feelings when he saw Tyray with the gun?

• Was Tyray capable of showing empathy? Why/Why not?

• Why did Tyray intimidate his former friends?

9. Retell the text as: Tyray, Bones, Rodney.

CHAPTER 10

On Monday morning, Tyray sensed that word about the gun was spreading through Bluford.

By lunchtime, freshmen were treating him differently. Jamee Wills, who usually, scoffed at him, looked down and parted off in another direction when he approached her in the hallway. Others who had snickered when Tyray walked by now steered clear of him. For the first time in days, Tyray walked through the halls with his shoulders thrown back and his head high.

In the cafeteria, Tyray spotted Darrell. Almost mechanically, he found himself approaching Darrel's table. As he got closer, he noticed Harold was watching him. his face stricken as if he saw a ghost.

"Hi, there, Mercer," Tyray said, looking directly at Darrell. A hush seemed to fall over the cafeteria.

"Hi," Darrell answered, his eyes shifting to Tyray's hands.

He's looking for the gun, Tyray thought.

"I see you eatin' the cafeteria food," Tyray said. "S'pposed to be bad for your health." Darrell did not say anything, but Tyray saw something familiar in the boy's eyes—fear. "But I guess it'll take a long time for that stuff to kill you," Tyray added before walking away.

After lunch, Tyray was called to the principal's office. He had hoped word of the gun would not reach any Bluford teachers. As he entered Ms. Spencer's office, he felt nervous. She had a stern look on her face. "Well, Mr. Hobbs," she said coldly. "Have we got a problem?"

Tyray smiled politely. "No, ma'am. Not me. Everything's cool. I'm studyin' and keepin' outta trouble."

Ms. Spencer eyed him warily. He knew she was no fool. "I've heard rumors that you're starting to intimidate kids again. There's even talk that you have a gun.

I don't know if any of this is true, so I thought I'd ask you. Is any of this true? If it is, tell me now, and let me help you. I don't want to see you ruin your life or harm anyone else."

"Hey, I ain't got no gun, Ms. Spencer. I know we got this zero-tolerance rule about weapons, and that's a good thing. I got to tell you though, Ms. Spencer, Darrell Mercer likes to spread lies about me. Most likely he's the one spreadin' those rumors."

"Then you would have no objections to a check of your backpack and locker?" Ms. Spencer asked.

"That's just fine. I got nothin' to hide," Tyray said, beginning to empty his backpack on the principal's desk. He knew better than to bring his gun to school. After Ms. Spencer thoroughly inspected each pocket of his backpack, she escorted him to his locker. Two hallway monitors accompanied them.

"1 told you I ain't got a gun," he said as they examined his locker. Ms. Spencer watched in grim silence.

After the locker was checked, Tyray returned to his classes. Students' heads turned nervously as he walked to his desk.

"Whatcha lookin' at?" he asked, knowing no one would dare answer him.

By the end of the day, Tyray could see the nervous tension in the eyes of many students passing him in the hallway.

Even Shamar and Cedric eyed him nervously as he walked out of the building.

Outside, he felt a hand grab his arm. He turned to find Lark standing next to him.

"Tyray, what's happening around here?" she asked. "Everyone says you're after Darrell Mercer and you got a gun. Is that true?"

"Who said that?" Tyray said, pretending to be shocked.

Lark put her hand on Tyray's shoulder and stared into his eyes. "Tyray, I care about you, honest I do, but if you did something stupid like getting a gun and—"

"Look, I don't wanna talk about it no more," Tyray said, avoiding her gaze.

"Tyray, Darrell didn't mean anything against you. He was just scared of you is all. Can't you just forget all the stuff that happened?" Lark said.

Tyray glared at Lark. "Oh, so now you sidin' with him too? Girl, just leave me alone."

"I wish you'd change," Lark pleaded. "Tyray, I've liked you from the beginning because I thought I saw something in you that nobody else could see. I thought you were different from what everybody else said. I thought that no one ever gave you a chance."

"Yeah, well maybe you thought wrong," Tyray growled. "I'm what everyone says. I'm bad, and you should just stay away from me." He had to get away from Lark. Something about her was getting to him, was twisting him inside. No matter how hard he fought it, it was there. "I gotta go," he muttered, turning to walk away.

"Tyray, listen to me! Stop whatever it is you're planning. This thing with Darrell should have ended a long time ago. It's got to stop. Just go talk to him. He's working at the grocery store until 8:00 tonight. Why don't you call him after he gets home?"

Tyray turned back and looked at Lark. For a second, he considered her idea, but just as quickly, he dismissed it. If he called, Darrell would win, and Tyray would be the loser once again. He could not let that happen.

"I ain't callin' no one," he said, walking towards home.

"But Tyray . . . ," Lark began. Her voice grated on his nerves. He ignored her and kept walking.

Tyray got home before his parents and found a message on the answering machine. It was from his mother, asking him to call her at work as soon as he got home. Tyray knew from the sound of her voice that she was worried. Maybe Ms. Spencer called her. If so, it was only a matter of time before Dad found out what was happening.

Tyray felt as if the world was closing in on him. Chills ran through Tyray's body, and his thoughts began spinning wildly. He dreaded the hour his father returned, and he knew not to call his mother. She would panic, and then he would have to deal with both of his parents. Tyray felt like an animal backed into a corner. Darrell was going to win again.

Tyray raced to his room and grabbed the gun. He had to be gone before his parents made it home. Hiding the gun under his belt, he bolted from the house. It was 4:00, and gray clouds were gathering overhead. Tyray knew he had to act tonight. If his parents found out about the gun, he would be in the worst trouble of his life. He knew his father would beat him, maybe even disown him as he had Warren. Ms. Spencer would certainly kick him out of school. There would be nothing left for him but the torment of other kids, or worse—jail.

If I'm goin' down, thought Tyray as he reached a park, Mercer is goin' down with me.

At 6:00, a fine drizzle began to fall. Tyray escaped it by going into a local arcade. It was a place he and Warren would sometimes go when they needed to get away from Dad.

Tyray watched as kids took turns shooting villains on a large video screen. The bodies flashed for a second when they were hit and then disappeared. Tyray remembered how he and his brother used to play such games. He pushed the memory from his mind, fighting back tears. He missed Warren desperately, but he was alone now, and nothing would change that.

Tyray kept an eye on the arcade's windows, watching as darkness descended on the neighborhood. He felt a knot in the pit of his stomach as he imagined the events to come.

Heading out into the steady drizzle, Tyray walked towards the store where Darrell worked. Making sure not to draw attention to himself, he scoped out the spot where he thought he had the best chance of surprising Darrell. It was an alley lined by thick bushes behind some boarded up garages. The other days, Tyray had seen Darrell bike through the alley on his way to work. He knew that with the thick misty darkness, he could hide undetected in the shadows until Darrell appeared. He would just wait for him and then jump out, knock Darrell off his bike, and do it. It was as simple as that.